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Damascus, Syria – A former British boxing champion has been cleared of a plot to go to Syria to fight alongside the radical group of Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL).

“Anthony Small, 33, was accused of plotting with two others to slip out of the UK on false passports to join and support ISIL in Syria,” The Telegraph reported on Tuesday.

It said that the former British and Commonwealth light middleweight champion had begun to sell items including boxing gloves and boots in the run up to leaving the UK, jurors heard, “but had to delay his plans after breaking his hand”.

Small’s co-accused –Michael Coe, 34, and 44-year-old Simon Keeler– were caught in the back of a lorry in Dover in November last year with false documents.

According to reports, the suspects were accused of trying to leave the UK to head for Syria, but were also cleared by the jury at the Old Bailey.